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190624 KL Founder Institute ºÝºÝߣs- Product Management - Warren Leow

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Warren Leow
Warren Leow

Warren Leow: ºÝºÝߣs on Product Management based on experiences at Inmagine, Amazing Fables, Designs.ai and more.

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Online Business Product Management Some Anecdotal Insights Warren Leow, Vice President Inmagine Group Amazing Fables Warren.leow@123rf.com
My experiences • Fluentfuture- C2C social network focusing on language learning • Project Butterfly- Live-matching C2C dating platform • Guru-App- 50+ mobile B2C apps on Google Play and • MaGIC- designed, managed and ran some startup programs • Inmagine • Designs.net, TheHungryJPEG - marketplaces • Stockunlimited- subscription product • Designs.ai- SaaS product I am NOT a trained product manager, nor do I follow proper UX/UI methodology. I just get things done.
Basic principles of Product Management are the same… https://www.shopify.com/partners/blog/design-sprint Product Management is NOT rocket science. You just need to be able to listen, rationalise and prioritise.
What am I building exactly? • How big is the problem or the opportunity? Lifestyle or mega opportunity • Can I distill it into two sentences for clarity? Clarity, communication, core understanding • Does it make business sense? Revenue, cost, repeat purchase, basket size Time, speed, constraints, cost of investment • Can I validate it? customers, geography, competitors, stakeholders
First step, establish a feedback loop 1. Identify core value proposition and monetisation model 2. Speak to people about pain points- internal and external 3. Validate via competition or external benchmarks 4. Understand user willingness and ability to pay 5. Sketch things out, write thoughts down, rank them from top to bottom, arrange them to form order 6. Sleep over the idea and mull over it 7. Launch and iterate again and again 8. Double down on growth channels 9. Go back to step 1 until you can have sufficient clarity on the top 1-2 drivers Feedback never stops
How do I plan for my product? • Which are the reference products out there? • Competitors- Do a quick scan of USPs • Reference cases- Reddit, Product Hunt, Techcrunch, TechinAsia, e27 • How can my product be 2X better or more relevant? • Can I visualise the step-out improvement? • by logical sequence always try to cut the length • By value what is my source of competitive advantage? • by adjacent parallels If too many parallels, it means you are not focused • How can I simplify it into components? • Can my user go from A to Z without this module? • What is the trade off for each? Time vs Budget vs Opportunity Cost
What is a MVP in an online context? • User can go from A to Z without manual work, i.e. registration to usage to output • You have the presentable basics to make you look legit- landing page, checkout page, T&Cs no excuses nowadays with templates • You have already cut off unnecessary slack in the core flow; Challenge yourself 2-3 times on whether a module is necessary • No need to over-engineer and overthink about setup at the start • Launch within 12 months. Don’t drag it • Your users are willing to pay $$$; Nothing beats money as a validator Aim to get the first 100 customers
How can I build my product? • How can I ship my product? • Create MVP myself- coder or non-coder • Outsource MVP to a freelancer • Build my own team • Hire an agency to create MVP • How can I fund my product? • Self-funding/bootstrap with time- Wordpress, Shopify, Wix, Magento etc. • Self-funding/bootstrap with money- Fiverr, Friendly contacts, Agencies • Self-funding with equity- Friend, Relative, Strangers • Raise money from VCs to build the product- Unless you are a superstar, no one is going to give you money without proving something first If you can’t get a basic product out yourself, you shouldn’t be running a startup. Go work for someone else.
Understanding Pareto compromise Budget for Outsourcing Micromanagment Propensity to discount Product completeness Find balance between leveraging your own time vs delegating You can never launch a perfect product. Find a balance based on value Your job as PM is to find a compromise
How do I handle tech people? • Clarity with Outlined Expectations • Be exceptionally clear in instructions and alignment • Sketch and map out your ideas first to have better discussions • Always have a live view on feature prioritisation • Feedback, feedback, feedback • Get internal and external feedback before building • Solicit regular feedback on work in progress • Frequent communication and check-ins for them to contribute ideas • Respect • Overindex for quality if you want things fast and don’t want to micromanage • Understand that yield loss is normal and never 100% unavoidable • Factor in 25% for scope extension and 25% for slippages • Have 3 strikes policy. Don’t tolerate unresponsiveness and non-performance Be Clear In Communication
Key metrics to focus on when starting off • There are 5 pirate metrics but your MVP should focus on 3 of them during the early stages • Acquisition • Activation • Revenue • Retention • Referral • If you can hustle to the first 100 users, it shows product validation; focus on product improvement • If you can grow to the first 1000 paying users, it shows business validation; start shifting towards acquisition • If you can grow to first 1000 paying users and retain 30% of them, it shows you have a fundable business; think of scaling it aggressively Race to $ validation Product lifecycle Time Users
Do’s and Don’ts in terms of tech startup product management • Focus on building a product which scales; Don’t do social enterprises. 99% social enterprises are not sustainable as they don’t make $ • Read a lot, keep track of relative competitors and trends. Your ideas will evolve • Practice makes perfect. Keep sketching to improve • When you’re on the wrong track, don’t be afraid to pivot or kill it off • If you make a mistake, learn when to cut losses • If you lack direction, take a step back and reevaluate • Be decisive and committed when making decisions • Be humble enough to listen, learn and copy
Warren’s own 5 principles and 5 rules of thumb What is the core product built on first principles? How can my product maximise value and simplicity for users? What is my simplest and shortest flow? How can I quantify and extract $ from the value? How do I retain customer loyalty? With good product management, you should not have to rely on discounts to survive If your customer base is subsidy driven, your product & business model are screwed up Your product must have 50-60% gross profit margin to be a viable profitable business Don’t just build a good product. Be a good marketer. Product is 50% of the equation. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Don’t be arrogantly stubborn. Don’t take too much pride in your work.
Check out Designs.ai ²õ´Ç´Ç²Ô…
Check out www.amazingfables.com

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190624 KL Founder Institute ºÝºÝߣs- Product Management - Warren Leow

  • 1. Online Business Product Management Some Anecdotal Insights Warren Leow, Vice President Inmagine Group Amazing Fables Warren.leow@123rf.com
  • 2. My experiences • Fluentfuture- C2C social network focusing on language learning • Project Butterfly- Live-matching C2C dating platform • Guru-App- 50+ mobile B2C apps on Google Play and • MaGIC- designed, managed and ran some startup programs • Inmagine • Designs.net, TheHungryJPEG - marketplaces • Stockunlimited- subscription product • Designs.ai- SaaS product I am NOT a trained product manager, nor do I follow proper UX/UI methodology. I just get things done.
  • 3. Basic principles of Product Management are the same… https://www.shopify.com/partners/blog/design-sprint Product Management is NOT rocket science. You just need to be able to listen, rationalise and prioritise.
  • 4. What am I building exactly? • How big is the problem or the opportunity? Lifestyle or mega opportunity • Can I distill it into two sentences for clarity? Clarity, communication, core understanding • Does it make business sense? Revenue, cost, repeat purchase, basket size Time, speed, constraints, cost of investment • Can I validate it? customers, geography, competitors, stakeholders
  • 5. First step, establish a feedback loop 1. Identify core value proposition and monetisation model 2. Speak to people about pain points- internal and external 3. Validate via competition or external benchmarks 4. Understand user willingness and ability to pay 5. Sketch things out, write thoughts down, rank them from top to bottom, arrange them to form order 6. Sleep over the idea and mull over it 7. Launch and iterate again and again 8. Double down on growth channels 9. Go back to step 1 until you can have sufficient clarity on the top 1-2 drivers Feedback never stops
  • 6. How do I plan for my product? • Which are the reference products out there? • Competitors- Do a quick scan of USPs • Reference cases- Reddit, Product Hunt, Techcrunch, TechinAsia, e27 • How can my product be 2X better or more relevant? • Can I visualise the step-out improvement? • by logical sequence always try to cut the length • By value what is my source of competitive advantage? • by adjacent parallels If too many parallels, it means you are not focused • How can I simplify it into components? • Can my user go from A to Z without this module? • What is the trade off for each? Time vs Budget vs Opportunity Cost
  • 7. What is a MVP in an online context? • User can go from A to Z without manual work, i.e. registration to usage to output • You have the presentable basics to make you look legit- landing page, checkout page, T&Cs no excuses nowadays with templates • You have already cut off unnecessary slack in the core flow; Challenge yourself 2-3 times on whether a module is necessary • No need to over-engineer and overthink about setup at the start • Launch within 12 months. Don’t drag it • Your users are willing to pay $$$; Nothing beats money as a validator Aim to get the first 100 customers
  • 8. How can I build my product? • How can I ship my product? • Create MVP myself- coder or non-coder • Outsource MVP to a freelancer • Build my own team • Hire an agency to create MVP • How can I fund my product? • Self-funding/bootstrap with time- Wordpress, Shopify, Wix, Magento etc. • Self-funding/bootstrap with money- Fiverr, Friendly contacts, Agencies • Self-funding with equity- Friend, Relative, Strangers • Raise money from VCs to build the product- Unless you are a superstar, no one is going to give you money without proving something first If you can’t get a basic product out yourself, you shouldn’t be running a startup. Go work for someone else.
  • 9. Understanding Pareto compromise Budget for Outsourcing Micromanagment Propensity to discount Product completeness Find balance between leveraging your own time vs delegating You can never launch a perfect product. Find a balance based on value Your job as PM is to find a compromise
  • 10. How do I handle tech people? • Clarity with Outlined Expectations • Be exceptionally clear in instructions and alignment • Sketch and map out your ideas first to have better discussions • Always have a live view on feature prioritisation • Feedback, feedback, feedback • Get internal and external feedback before building • Solicit regular feedback on work in progress • Frequent communication and check-ins for them to contribute ideas • Respect • Overindex for quality if you want things fast and don’t want to micromanage • Understand that yield loss is normal and never 100% unavoidable • Factor in 25% for scope extension and 25% for slippages • Have 3 strikes policy. Don’t tolerate unresponsiveness and non-performance Be Clear In Communication
  • 11. Key metrics to focus on when starting off • There are 5 pirate metrics but your MVP should focus on 3 of them during the early stages • Acquisition • Activation • Revenue • Retention • Referral • If you can hustle to the first 100 users, it shows product validation; focus on product improvement • If you can grow to the first 1000 paying users, it shows business validation; start shifting towards acquisition • If you can grow to first 1000 paying users and retain 30% of them, it shows you have a fundable business; think of scaling it aggressively Race to $ validation Product lifecycle Time Users
  • 12. Do’s and Don’ts in terms of tech startup product management • Focus on building a product which scales; Don’t do social enterprises. 99% social enterprises are not sustainable as they don’t make $ • Read a lot, keep track of relative competitors and trends. Your ideas will evolve • Practice makes perfect. Keep sketching to improve • When you’re on the wrong track, don’t be afraid to pivot or kill it off • If you make a mistake, learn when to cut losses • If you lack direction, take a step back and reevaluate • Be decisive and committed when making decisions • Be humble enough to listen, learn and copy
  • 13. Warren’s own 5 principles and 5 rules of thumb What is the core product built on first principles? How can my product maximise value and simplicity for users? What is my simplest and shortest flow? How can I quantify and extract $ from the value? How do I retain customer loyalty? With good product management, you should not have to rely on discounts to survive If your customer base is subsidy driven, your product & business model are screwed up Your product must have 50-60% gross profit margin to be a viable profitable business Don’t just build a good product. Be a good marketer. Product is 50% of the equation. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Don’t be arrogantly stubborn. Don’t take too much pride in your work.
  • 14. Check out Designs.ai ²õ´Ç´Ç²Ô…